Some Work & Some Play around Hakata Bay

We can start this post with Wakame asking:

What's Up?

In Fukuoka, the month of May is the start of 
TAI=snapper fishing season.  

Sumie Maru, the fishing boat i usually help when they are busy 
again asked me to do so.

The catch of the day-before, is brought to the big fish-market down town. For that, small K-trucks are used. Of course the fish is still alive...as swimming fish makes the best price.

This time Sumie Maru had a good catch and so we needed 2 K-trucks, each loaded with 6 tanks.

By the way:What time is it?

Right, 0330 AM!

Empty boxes are set out, to be filled with sea water...

Then, when we get the signal from the fish auction manager, the fish is put into these boxes...

As you can see, some serious fellows...

Red Caps are the fish buyers....

The whole sales-process is done in less than 5 minutes...

Don't ask me for details...as the language used by these market people is a combo of 

Japanese, Hakata-ben, Latin and...

By now it's 0415, and fisherman friend Kunitoshi always likes to take me for a bowl of

Hakata Ramen.

I'm not a big fan of the soup, but the noddles are NICE.

Eating a bowl of noodles after the fish market became "bunka"...tradition...so i join the ride...

What else is UP?

Fu Kyo the Cat is now parked in her possy in the Meinohama Fishing Port.

Awaiting her busines: Sunset Sailing and other trips around the bay.

Or even better: Sailing to the off-shore islands Iki, Tsushima, Ohshima....

  Showing her great location in the Meinohama Port.

Perfect for evening parties, as from the cockpit, the view over Marinoa is Magic.

There was more done...

??

What's Marijke doing??

Ping-pong.

With buddy runner Noriko a run was made to Mt Imori.

This aluminium Tori can be seen from far away...and is impressive to stand beneath.

It was a blue blue sky day.

And Tatata....next....

Somehow Tokyo TV heard about our "poor-man's life".

And that we were living on a boat.

So, they decided to make a program about ..well,

 our life here in Meinohama, about our fun jobs and our adventures with the fisherman's families.

A great promotion for Fukuoka Sunset Sailing as 1 day we went out sailing with Fu Kyo...

Marijke was followed by the TV camera to her job at the LaLaLa  Daycare in Daizafu where she runs
 an All English Activity for the customers.
Never too young to learn idea.

And then at home, Marijke was "close-upped" while cooking...

Result?

Traditional Japanese Alishan food...

Sashimi, hot steaming rice with a raw egg, spinach, tofu, natto and nori.

Yummy.

The whole TV program recording lasted for 3 days...pfff.

By now we have seen the result, shown all over Japan, and we have to say:

 They made a nice show about our "house-less life"

in Meinohama.

A few days later we got this year's first foreign boat in Odo yacht-harbor in Fukuoka.

Last year very few boats came as a result of the big earthquake/tsunami of 2011.

By now (June 11) already 6 boats have arrived...Keeping us busy with helping out with what ever.

Tasmania sailing yacht Nomzamo.

With Lorraine and Howard.

It's tsuyu now, rainy season, but we are experiencing many nice days.

Luff this time of the year: 
Not cold and the days are still getting longer.

Salute